My finch laid an egg. How do I check for fertility and candle it?

You should be able to candle a finch egg like you would any other egg, however you will have to be extremely careful as they are very very fragile. Finch eggs will also start out semi translucent and then become more opaque/bluish in color as they mature if they are fertile.

Thanks for reaching out about Chip. At this early stage it is not easy to determine fertility of eggs. One can candle them (holding a flashlight behind the egg) to visualize the embryo. If there are visible blood vessels or a black dot (developing embryo), then they are fertile. Incubator period for many smaller birds is generally 21-28 days, depending on the species. If you allow them to sit on the eggs, they will usually abandon the nest once they determine the eggs are not fertile. Good luck.

In general, if the incubation does not begin within a week, the chances of the eggs hatching decreases significantly. It make be that the finches' parental instincts have not matured yet or possibly the eggs were not fertilized. You can dispose of the eggs and see if the finches have better luck on the next clutch. Best of luck!

You can gently pick up the eggs if you need to move them or check them for fertility (small bird eggs will start out clearish and turn more opaque as they mature if fertile), however if you are planning on raising babies it is best to leave the eggs alone so that their parents can sit on them and incubate them without extra stress or accidental breakage from handling.

It's possible the eggs are not fertile which is why she has given up sitting on them, or they may be ready to hatch as two weeks from the last laid egg is about the right time for it. If she doesn't return to sitting on them you can use a bright light and hold up the eggs to them to see if you can see any development inside. if the eggs do hatch, having some baby bird food on hand to help assist with feeding is best as five babies is a lot for one mom to handle!

It would depend on if the eggs are fertilized or not. If you only have female budgies the eggs will not be fertilized and will not hatch. If you have a mating male with female I would recommend keeping the birds in a quiet location that is low stress. The female bird will care to the eggs and keep them warm. If you find she is leaving them in the open you. An put material in the cage so she can build a nest.

Baby birds are not usually born with feathers so that would be unlikely that you would see feathers within the egg, however viable eggs tend to start off clearish and then become more opaque as they age. You can also hold them up to a candle or light source (carefully as they are fragile) to see if there is anything inside. If they are not sitting on the eggs at all, the eggs may not be viable, the parents may be too young or inexperienced. You can attempt to incubate the eggs yourself if they are viable, however if they are not, simply removing them and ensuring your birds have adequate diets and a calcium supplement can help encourage them to lay more eggs.